Felix the Cat
Felix the Cat | |
---|---|
First appearance | Feline Follies (1919) (as Master Tom) The Adventures of Felix (1919) (as Felix) |
Created by | Pat Sullivan Otto Messmer |
Designed by | Pat Sullivan and Otto Messmer (1919–1924) Bill Nolan (1924–1931; 1936) Otto Messmer (1932–1955) Joe Oriolo (1955–present) |
Voiced by | English Harry Edison (1929–1930)[1] Walter Tetley (1936) Jack Mercer (1959–1962) Ken Roberts (1959)[2] David Kolin (1988) Jim Pike (1990)[3] Thom Adcox-Hernandez (1995) Charlie Adler (1996) Don Oriolo (2000–2001) Denise Nejame (2000–2001; Baby) Dave Coulier (2004) Lani Minella (2010)[4] Japanese Toshihiko Seki (2000–2001) Yumi Tōma (2000–2001; Baby) |
In-universe information | |
Species | Cat |
Gender | Male |
Family | Inky and Winky (nephews) |
Significant other | Kitty (named Kitty White or Marie in the first 3 years of the silent cartoons) |
Felix the Cat is a cartoon character created in 1919 by Pat Sullivan and Otto Messmer during the silent film era. An anthropomorphic young black cat with white eyes, a black body, and a giant grin, he is often considered one of the most recognized cartoon characters in film history. Felix was the first fully realized animal character in the history of American film animation.[5]
Felix originated from the studio of Australian
By the late 1920s, with the arrival of
Felix cartoons began airing on American television in 1953. Joe Oriolo introduced a redesigned, "long-legged" Felix, with longer legs, a much smaller body, and a larger, rounder head with no whiskers and no teeth. Oriolo also added new characters and gave Felix a "Magic Bag of Tricks" that could assume an infinite variety of shapes at Felix's behest. The cat has since starred in other television programs and in two feature films. As of the 2010s, Felix is featured on a variety of merchandise from clothing to toys. Joe's son Don Oriolo later assumed creative control of Felix.
In 2002, TV Guide ranked Felix the Cat number 28 on its "50 Greatest Cartoon Characters of All Time" list.[8]
In 2014, Don Oriolo sold the rights to the character to DreamWorks Animation via DreamWorks Classics, which is now part of Comcast's NBCUniversal division via Universal Pictures.[9]
History
Creation
On 9 November 1919, Master Tom, a prototype of Felix, debuted in a Paramount Pictures short titled Feline Follies.[10] Produced by the Manhattan-based animation studio owned by Pat Sullivan, the cartoon was directed by cartoonist and animator Otto Messmer. It was a success, and the Sullivan studio quickly set to work on producing another film featuring Master Tom, in Musical Mews (released on 16 November 1919). It too proved to be successful with audiences. Messmer claimed that John King of Paramount Magazine suggested the name "Felix", as in "feline", and for contrast of the felicity traditionally associated with a black cat.[11] The name was first used for the third film starring the character, The Adventures of Felix (released on 14 December 1919). Sullivan claimed he named Felix after Australia Felix from Australian history and literature. In 1924, animator Bill Nolan redesigned the character, making him both rounder and "cuter". Felix's new looks, coupled with Messmer's character animation, brought Felix to a higher profile.[12]
Authorship
The question of who created Felix remains a matter of dispute. Sullivan stated in numerous newspaper interviews that he created Felix and did the key drawings for the character. On a visit to Australia in 1925, Sullivan told
Sullivan was the studio proprietor and—as is the case with almost all film entrepreneurs—he owned the copyright to any creative work by his employees. In common with many animators at the time, Messmer was not credited. After Sullivan's death in 1933, his estate in Australia took ownership of the character; although Messmer told Harry Kopp that Sullivan promised him the rights to Felix in his will, no such will existed by the time he died. Kopp and the estate got the rights in 1934 from King Features Syndicate after numerous conferences with him.[17][18]
It was not until after Sullivan's death that Sullivan staffers such as Hal Walker, Al Eugster,[19] Gerry Geronimi,[20] Rudy Zamora, George Cannata, and Sullivan's own lawyer, Harry Kopp, credited Messmer with Felix's creation. They claimed that Felix was based on an animated Charlie Chaplin that Messmer had animated for Sullivan's studio earlier on. The down-and-out personality and movements of the cat in Feline Follies reflect key attributes of Chaplin's, and, although blockier than the later Felix, the familiar black body is already there (Messmer found solid shapes easier to animate).[21] Messmer himself recalled his version of the cat's creation in an interview with animation historian John Canemaker:
Sullivan's studio was very busy, and Paramount, they were falling behind their schedule and they needed one extra to fill in. And Sullivan, being very busy, said, "If you want to do it on the side, you can do any little thing to satisfy them." So I figured a cat would be about the simplest. Make him all black, you know—you wouldn't need to worry about outlines. And one gag after the other, you know? Cute. And they all got laughs. So Paramount liked it so they ordered a series.
Further, Messmer told Canemaker that both he and Sullivan drew Felix based on models from the minstrel show tradition and the pickaninny caricature:
Pat Sullivan... started off on his own, doing his little Negro Pickaninny [Sammie Johnsin]. Which later on became almost Felix, at least in my mind anyway. Same kind of a, only he was a pickaninny. Now that was going along pretty good, but it didn't through the South, that little anti-Negro feeling. They wouldn't run the Pickaninnies.[22]
The tropes of minstrelsy were useful for creating a cartoon animal because they cued the audience to expect a lively, amusing and rebellious character.[22]
Animation historians back Messmer's claims. Among them are
Sullivan marketed the cat relentlessly while Messmer continued to produce a prodigious volume of Felix cartoons. Messmer did the animation on white paper with inkers tracing the drawings directly. The animators drew backgrounds onto pieces of celluloid, which were then laid atop the drawings to be photographed. Any perspective work had to be animated by hand, as the studio cameras were unable to perform pans or trucks.
Popularity and distribution
Paramount Pictures distributed the earliest films from 1919 to 1921. Margaret J. Winkler distributed the shorts from 1922 to 1925, the year when Educational Pictures took over the distribution of the shorts. Sullivan promised them one new Felix short every two weeks.[25] The combination of solid animation, skillful promotion, and widespread distribution brought Felix's popularity to new heights.[12]
References to alcoholism and
Felix's great success also spawned a host of imitators. The appearances and personalities of other 1920s feline stars such as
Felix's cartoons were also popular among critics. They have been cited as imaginative examples of surrealism in filmmaking. Felix has been said to represent a child's sense of wonder, creating the fantastic when it is not there, and taking it in stride when it is. His famous pace—hands behind his back, head down, deep in thought—became a trademark that has been analyzed by critics around the world.[28] Felix's expressive tail, which could be a shovel one moment, an exclamation mark or pencil the next, serves to emphasize that anything can happen in his world.[29] Aldous Huxley wrote that the Felix shorts proved that "[w]hat the cinema can do better than literature or the spoken drama is to be fantastic".[12]
By 1923, the character was at the peak of his film career. Felix in Hollywood, a short released during that year, plays upon Felix's popularity, as he becomes acquainted with such fellow celebrities as Douglas Fairbanks, Cecil B. DeMille, Charlie Chaplin, Ben Turpin, and even censor Will H. Hays. His image could be seen on clocks (not to be confused with the Kit-Cat Klock) and Christmas ornaments. Felix also became the subject of several popular songs of the day, such as "Felix Kept Walking" by Paul Whiteman. Sullivan made an estimated $100,000 a year from toy licensing alone.[12] With the character's success also emerged a handful of new costars. These included Felix's master Willie Jones, a mouse named Skiddoo, Felix's nephews Inky, Dinky, and Winky, and his girlfriend Kitty. Felix the Cat sheet music, with music by Pete Wendling and Max Kortlander and featuring lyrics by Alfred Bryan, was published in 1928 by Sam Fox Publishing Company. The cover art of Felix playing a banjo was done by Otto Messmer.[30]
Most of the early Felix cartoons mirrored American attitudes of the "Roaring Twenties". Ethnic stereotypes appeared in such shorts as Felix Goes Hungry (1924). Recent events such as the Russian Civil War were depicted in shorts like Felix All Puzzled (1924). Flappers were caricatured in Felix Strikes It Rich (1923). He also became involved in union organizing with Felix Revolts (also 1923). In some shorts, Felix even performed a rendition of the Charleston.
In 1928, Educational ceased releasing the Felix cartoons, and several were reissued by
Felix as mascot and pop culture icon
Given the character's unprecedented popularity and the fact that his name was partially derived from the Latin word for "happy", some rather notable individuals and organizations adopted Felix as a mascot. The first of these was a Los Angeles
This popularity persisted. In the late 1920s, the U.S. Navy's Bombing Squadron Two (VB-2B) adopted a unit insignia consisting of Felix happily carrying a bomb with a burning fuse. They retained the insignia through the 1930s, when they became a fighter squadron under the designations VF-6B and, later, VF-3, whose members Edward O'Hare and John Thach became famous naval aviators in World War II. After the war, a U.S. Navy fighter squadron currently designated VFA-31 replaced its winged meat-cleaver logo with the same insignia after the original Felix squadron had been disbanded. The carrier-based night-fighter squadron, nicknamed the "Tomcatters", remained active under various designations continuing to the present day, and Felix still appears on both the squadron's cloth jacket patches and aircraft, carrying his bomb with its fuse burning.
Felix is also the oldest high school mascot in the state of Indiana, chosen in 1926 after a Logansport High School player brought his plush Felix to a basketball game. When the team came from behind and won that night, Felix became the mascot of all the Logansport High School sports teams.[37][38]
When television was in the experimental stages in 1928, the very first image to ever be seen was a toy Felix the Cat mounted to a revolving phonograph turntable. It remained on screen for hours while engineers used it as a test pattern.[39][40]
Over a century after his debut on screen in 1919, he still makes occasional appearances in pop culture. The
Comics
Felix the Cat | |
---|---|
Author(s) | Pat Sullivan Otto Messmer (1927–1954) Jack Mendelsohn (1948–1952) Joe Oriolo (1955–1966)[46] |
Current status/schedule | Daily and Sunday; concluded |
Launch date | 19 August 1923 |
End date | 1966 |
Syndicate(s) | King Features Syndicate |
Publisher(s) | Dell Comics |
Genre(s) | Humor |
Pat Sullivan began a syndicated comic strip on 19 August 1923 distributed by King Features Syndicate.[12] In 1927 Messmer took over drawing duties of the strip.[47] (The first The Felix Annual from 1924 issued in Great Britain shows the last two stories are not the usual Otto Messmer style, so a difference in Pat Sullivan-drawn cartoons can be noted.)
Messmer himself pursued the Sunday Felix comic strips until their discontinuance in 1943, when he began eleven years of writing and drawing Felix comic books for Dell Comics that were released every other month. Jack Mendelsohn was the ghostwriter of the Felix strip from 1948 to 1952.[48] In 1954, Messmer retired from the Felix daily newspaper strips, and his assistant Joe Oriolo (the creator of Casper the Friendly Ghost) took over.[49] The strip concluded in 1966.
Felix co-starred with Betty Boop in the Betty Boop and Felix comic strip (1984–1987).
After 35 years of not being in any comics, Source Point Press announced that Felix the Cat would get a new comic book series, with the permission by
From silent to sound
With the advent of synchronized sound in
Felix's transition to sound was not a smooth one. Sullivan did not carefully prepare for Felix's transition to sound and added sound effects into the sound cartoons as a post-animation process.
In 1935, Amadee J. Van Beuren of the
Revival
In 1953, Official Films purchased the Sullivan–Messmer shorts, added soundtracks to them, and distributed them to the home movie and television markets.
Otto Messmer's assistant
Oriolo's plots revolve around the unsuccessful attempts of the antagonists to steal Felix's Magic Bag, though in an unusual twist, these antagonists are occasionally depicted as Felix's friends as well. The cartoons proved popular, but critics have dismissed them as paling in comparison to the earlier Sullivan–Messmer works, especially since Oriolo aimed the cartoons at children. Limited animation (required due to budgetary restraints) and simplistic storylines did nothing to diminish the series' popularity.[26]
In 1970, Oriolo gained complete control of the Felix character and Don Oriolo continues to promote the character to this day, even though the rights are now owned by DreamWorks Animation.
In 1975 until 1977, Oriolo presented a live-action series called Felix the Cat Live.
In the late 1980s, after his father's death, Don Oriolo teamed up with European animators to work on the character's first feature film, Felix the Cat: The Movie.[61] In the film, Felix visits an alternate reality along with the Professor and Poindexter. New World Pictures planned a 1987 Thanksgiving release for U.S. theaters, which did not happen;[61] the movie went direct-to-video in August 1991,[62] which was widely panned upon its release[63] before being completely abandoned in the US during the 21st century. In 1994, Felix appeared on television again, to replace the popular Fido Dido bumpers on CBS, and then one year later in the series The Twisted Tales of Felix the Cat. Baby Felix followed in 2000 for the Japanese market, and also the direct-to-video Felix the Cat Saves Christmas released in 2004. Oriolo also brought about a new wave of Felix merchandising, including Wendy's Kids Meal toys and a video game for the Nintendo Entertainment System.
Felix was voted in 2004 among the 100 Greatest Cartoons in a poll conducted by the British television channel Channel 4, ranking at No. 89.[64]
According to Don Oriolo's Felix the Cat blog, as of September 2008 there were plans in development for a new television series. Oriolo's biography page also mentions a 52-episode cartoon series then in the works titled The Felix the Cat Show, which was slated to use computer graphics.[65] Oriolo has not produced or directed any cartoons or feature films featuring Felix the Cat since the mid-2000s.
Home video
DVD releases include Presenting Felix the Cat from Bosko Video;
Filmography
See also
- Animation in the United States during the silent era
- Baby Felix
- Golden Age of American animation
- Kit-Cat Klock
- Winsor McCay
Notes
- ISBN 9780520221284. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
- ^ ""Felix the Cat" on Records". cartoonresearch.com. Retrieved 4 November 2020.
- ^ "Various Australian Commercials Part 33 (ATV-10, March 10, 1990)". Facebook. Retrieved 28 December 2020.
- ^ "Lani Minella Resume" (PDF). Lani Minella. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
- ^ Cart, Michael (31 March 1991). "The Cat With the Killer Personality". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 11 April 2014. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
- ISBN 978-0-19-516729-0.
- ^ "Goldenagecartoons.com". Felix.goldenagecartoons.com. Archived from the original on 31 October 2013. Retrieved 10 March 2014.
- ISBN 978-0-7624-3007-9.
- ^ McNary, Dave (17 June 2014). "DreamWorks Animation Buys Felix the Cat". Variety. Retrieved 17 June 2014.
- ^ Solomon, 34, says that the character was "the as yet unnamed Felix".
- ^ Maltin 1987, p. 23.
- ^ a b c d e f g Solomon 1994, p. 34.
- ^ "Felix exhibition guide (archived)" (PDF). webarchive.nla.gov.au. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 October 2007. Retrieved 2 September 2017.
- ^ a b "All Media and legends...A thumbnail dipped in tar". Vixenmagazine.com. Archived from the original on 27 September 2008. Retrieved 14 September 2008.
- ^ "Rewind (ABC TV): Felix the Cat". Abc.net.au. 31 October 2004. Archived from the original on 8 February 2012. Retrieved 10 March 2014.
- ^ "100 Years of Felix the Cat". 25 February 2020. Retrieved 21 April 2022.
- ^ Culhane 1986, p. 57-58.
- ^ Canemaker 1991, p. 137-138.
- ^ Canemaker 1991, p. 108.
- ^ "Gerry Geronimi: An Interview by Michael Barrier and Milton Gray". Retrieved 27 June 2022.
- ^ Maltin 1987, p. 22-23.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-8223-7578-4.)
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link - ^ Barrier 1999, p. 29.
- ^ Beck 1998, p. 23.
- ^ Barrier 1999, p. 30.
- ^ a b c Solomon 1994, p. 37.
- ^ "Norakuro"
- ^ For example, Solomon, 34, quotes Marcel Brion on these points.
- ^ Solomon 1994, p. 36.
- ^ Heritage Auctions: completed auctions, 9 August 2009 and was subtitled "Pat Sullivan's Famous Creation in Song".
- ^ Canemaker 1991, p. 129-130.
- ^ Canemaker 1991, p. 141-142.
- ^ ETERNAL YOUTH: WALTER TETLEY, RADIO'S ESSENTIAL KID
- ^ "Laokay.com". Retrieved 10 March 2014.
- ^ Los Angeles, CA (1 January 1970). "maps.google.com". Goo.gl. Retrieved 10 March 2014.
- ^ Canemaker 1991, p. 118.
- ^ "History of Mascot Felix the Cat". lhs.lcsc.k12.in.us. Logansport High School. Archived from the original on 22 March 2020. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
- ^ Viquez, Marc (10 June 2020). "How Felix the Cat Became This High School's Mascot". SportsLogos.Net News. Archived from the original on 18 June 2020. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
- ^ "The First Star of Television". Museum of Television. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
- ^ Shedden, David (7 November 2014). "Today in Media History: In 1928 Felix the Cat began testing a new tech called television". Poynter. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
- ^ "The Queers – Interviews". Thequeersrock.com. Archived from the original on 9 March 2008. Retrieved 14 September 2008.
- ^ "Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)". IMDb. Retrieved 2 September 2017.
- ^ Beck, Jerry (28 October 2019). "Universal Celebrates 100 Years of "Felix The Cat"". Animation Scoop. Archived from the original on 31 October 2019. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
- ^ Knight, Rosie (9 November 2019). "Celebrate 100 Years of Felix the Cat with a New Line of Merch". Nerdist. Archived from the original on 11 November 2019. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
- ^ Bondfield, Mel (5 November 2019). "100 Years of Felix the Cat". www.nfsa.gov.au. National Film and Sound Archive of Australia. Archived from the original on 26 June 2020. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
- ^ "Oriolo entry". Who's Who of American Comic Books, 1928–1999. Retrieved 18 November 2018.
- ^ Messmer entry, Who's Who of American Comic Books, 1928–1999. Accessed 18 Nov. 2018.
- ^ Mendelsohn entry, Who's Who of American Comic Books, 1928–1999. Accessed 18 Nov. 2018.
- ^ Canemaker 1991, p. 149.
- ^ Alexa, Lauren (25 August 2021). "'Felix the Cat' Returning in New Kids' Comic Book Series". Animation World Network. Retrieved 10 April 2022.
- ^ "Tracy Yardley on Twitter: As far as I understand, Source Point is no longer publishing the books. I'll wait for some official announcement to say more about when or who it's coming from". Twitter. 23 February 2022. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
- ^ "Tracey Yardley on Twitter: It's not cancelled. I'mcurrently struggling to finish drawing the last issue while I take care of my wife's aunt as she slowly dies of cancer. The book will be published by Rocketship Entertainment as soon as the all the line art/coloring/lettering/printing is complete". 10 September 2022. Retrieved 12 November 2022.
- ^ "NYCC '22: Rocketship brings stars, signings and giveaways". The Beat. 5 October 2022. Retrieved 12 November 2022.
- ^ Johnston, Rich (15 November 2022). "Rocketship's Imprint For Kids, Bottlerocket, Starts With Felix The Cat". Bleeding Cool. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
- ^ "Felix the Cat|Paperback".
- ^ Canemaker 1991, p. 121-123.
- ^ Canemaker 1991, p. 128-129.
- ^ The Film Daily (Jul–Dec 1929). New York, Wid's Films and Film Folks. July 1929. p. 978.
- ^ Gordon, Ian (2002). "Felix the Cat". St. James Encyclopedia of Pop Culture. Archived from the original on 28 June 2009.
- ^ Quoted in Solomon 37.
- ^ ISBN 1-55698-269-0. Retrieved 14 June 2010.
- ^ "New on Video". Beacon Journal. 23 August 1991. p. D21. Retrieved 14 June 2010.
- ISBN 978-0-00-726080-5.
- ^ "The 100 Greatest Cartoons". Channel 4. Archived from the original on 6 March 2005. Retrieved 20 February 2013.
- ^ "Donsfelixblog.com". Donsfelixblog.com. Archived from the original on 17 May 2014. Retrieved 10 March 2014.
- ^ Cyrenne, Randall (7 August 2004). "Presenting Felix the Cat: The Otto Mesmer Classics 1919–1924". Animated Views. Retrieved 20 April 2022.
- ^ Felix
- ^ Before Walt
References
- Barrier, Michael (1999). Hollywood Cartoons: American Animation in Its Golden Age. ISBN 978-0-1980-2079-0.
- Beck, Jerry (1998). The 50 Greatest Cartoons. JG Press. ISBN 978-1-5721-5271-7.
- Canemaker, John (1991). Felix: The Twisted Tale of the World's Most Famous Cat. Pantheon, New York: Da Capo Press. ISBN 978-0-3068-0731-2.
- Crafton, Donald (1993). Before Mickey: The Animated Film 1898–1928. Chicago: ISBN 0-226-11667-0.
- Culhane, Shamus (1986). Talking Animals and Other People. St. Martin's Press. ISBN 978-0-306-80830-2.
- Gerstein, David (1996). Nine Lives to Live. Fantagraphics Books.
- Gifford, Denis (1990). American Animated Films: The Silent Era, 1897–1929. McFarland and Company. ISBN 0-8995-0460-4.
- Maltin, Leonard (1987). Of Mice and Magic: A History of American Animated Cartoons. ISBN 978-0-4522-5993-5.
- Solomon, Charles (1994). The History of Animation: Enchanted Drawings. Outlet Books Company. ISBN 978-0-394-54684-1.
Further reading
- Patricia Vettel Tom (1996): Felix the Cat as Modern Trickster. JSTOR 3109216American Art, Vol. 10, No. 1 (Spring, 1996), pp. 64–87
External links
- Official website
- Felix the Cat at Don Markstein's Toonopedia. Archived from the original on 15 July 2016.
- Pat Sulivan at the Internet Archive.
- The Classic Felix the Cat Page at Golden Age Cartoons
- Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 2004, Rewind "Felix the Cat" (Concerns the dispute over who created the character.)
- "State Library of New South Wales, 2005, "Reclaiming Felix the Cat"" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 October 2006. (768 KiB). Exhibition guide, including many pictures.
- Mendoza, N.F. (27 August 1995). "For fall, a classically restyled puddy tat and Felix the Cat". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 24 August 2010.